The Ellis Island Immigration Museum reopened its doors yesterday after being shut down Oct. 29, 2012, in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. The museum’s restoration comes a day before Sandy’s one-year anniversary, marking a decisive moment in a long, national recovery effort that has gained significant ground since the hurricane struck the Eastern seaboard, taking over 100 lives and destroying $65 billion of property.
The Metropolitan Transport Authority reported that repairing all damages would cost $5 billion. New York’s vast underground subway system poses a significant engineering challenge in flood-proofing, which will unavoidably require a substantial amount of time. However, the MTA has yet to acquire the federal funding necessary for a full recovery. In March of this year, it received $1.4 billion in federal recovery funds.While this is a large figure, it still falls considerably short of the $5 billion necessary. Nevertheless, this federal aid shows improvement.
A significant number of tri-state residents lost jobs because of the destruction of Sandy. New York and New Jersey lost 29,100 and 8,100 jobs, respectively, with some of this unemployment persisting because of the destruction of computers, offices and equipment necessary for businesses to function. The federal government has facilitated “more than $28 million in Disaster Unemployment Assistance to disaster survivors,” and “$47 million in National Emergency Grants.” It seems unclear, as of yet, what effect these grants have had on New York City. The current citywide unemployment rate of 8.7 percent is virtually the same as the 8.6 percent rate after the hurricane.
Although significant rebuilding challenges remain, New York City is making progress on its recovery efforts. Entire communities on Staten Island and Long Island still need help reconstructing devastated homes and businesses, and last week’s announcement by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development provides hope that New Yorkers will be receiving relief soon. HUD officials have allocated more than $2 billion to rebuild devastated neighborhoods — 80 percent of which is intended for Long Island. Additionally, thousands of families whose homes were at risk of foreclosure are protected by the Federal Housing Administration’s foreclosure moratorium, protecting New Yorkers from undue harm.
An emblem of New York City’s mosaic of different cultures and ethnicities, Ellis Island once greeted millions of immigrants into the United States, offering a promising new life to those who could not find one before. The reopening of Ellis Island is not only symbolic of hard-won recovery and a resilient nation, but also of a continuation to offer relief to the millions affected affected by Sandy.
A version of this article appeared in the Tuesday, Oct. 29 print edition. Email the WSN Editorial Board at edit [email protected].